Fitness First - rant / advice?

3dsmills

Hi All,

This is a rant as i'm still furious at these people, and at myself, but i'd also like some advice please?

Sept 2006 I signed up with Fitness First (£28 a month by direct debit) for 12 months, and was told by the sales guy it was 12 months and that was all we were signed in for. So all was well, but after 3 months we decided we didn't like the gym, it didn't have a pool, always had to queue to go on the machines and it didnt have a good atmosphere so we stopped going.

We had signed in for 12 months so accepted we would have to pay for the duration of our contract (and obviously still had the option of going to the gym if we wanted to) and then just forgot about. No further correspondance from the gym, no 'your membership renewal date is coming up' nothing. Got a bank statement through in December and realised we were still being charged so I cancelled he direct debit and phoned the gym to tell them and that as we had only signed up for 12 months we weren't paying any longer, they said, 'oh yes, we noticed you hadn't been in since the beginning of the year!' and was given a number for their HO as I needed to inform them.

RUDE 'customer service' girl was not having any of it and insisted I pay January's membership too. I said no, explained what I had been sold by their sales guy and said as far as I was concerned I had paid 3 months more than I had agreed and didn't want to pay anymore. She said it was in the small print that I had to give them 1 months notice to leave and HAD to make the payment. I said I wouldn't and we left it at that.

Today I receive a bill from a debt collectors :eek: for 1 months membership plus a £25 admin fee. I'm going to have to pay it as I'm in the process of buying a house and cannot let somethin glike this affect my credit rating.

Where do I stand?

Do I just put it down to experience, pay it and forget about it or do I stand up to them and demand my money back? I know it's partly my fault for assuming (as i was told) that I would only pay for 12 months but they were even aware I was not using the gym and continued to take my money, and did not notify me the 12 was up. I thought it was standard practise for companies taking an annual membership to notify you if they were going to continue to take money, I as a member with Virgin Active for 4 years, they always did this and even dropped you a note if you hadn't been in for a couple of weeks.



Thanks for listening

Blacksheep1979

you have to give a months notice on canceling - it's just the same as renting a property where initially you may have a 12 month contract then it goes onto a rolling monthly contract and you have to give notice equal to the fee period ie you pay monthly, have to give a months notice, weekly and have to give a weeks notice.

I'd save yourself the time and hassle and possibly extra cost and pay up and in future read what you sign.

chuckley

u never cancelled so they continued charging. its not actually their fault, plus she's right ud have to pay jan and then they would terminate ur contract.